East Coast Influenza
by no-name-writer
Summary: The team is called to Canada to try and cure a disturbing outbreak. small Nathen.


Sup?

Just a story I made up on a whim. It's about Medical Investigation, my new favourite show. Drama, bit of Comedy, and a bit of Romance, so read on!

Disclaimer: I don't own M.I. I don't own its characters. I own mine. And I own that hot blue car ;D.

* * *

East Coast Influenza: Part I

"Alright, now you take it easy. I'll put you in as excused so you don't get in crap like I used to." Selly Zaharoff laughed. Dressed in her full uniform, she ruffled the hair on her younger brother's head. "And I mean it! I want you to stay in bed and watch TV. Oh, and eat that soup!" She yelled from the bottom of the stairs as she pulled open the door.

"No, no, no, Dutch, you can't come with me. I don't think the CO would want you running around." She gently pushed the large retired German Sheppard back inside.

Careful of her polished boots, Selly slid into driver's seat of her car. She threw her white hat into the passenger's seat and pulled out of the driveway.

Fifteen minutes later, Selly stood in front of the corps' commanding officer. She swiftly saluted her superior.

"'Evening sir." She grinned at the old man.

"Nice to see you here again, Acting-sub-lieutenant. How long are you staying this time?" Lieutenant Commander Eric Jacobson was a heavy-set man of about fifty. A big bushy beard covered most of his mouth, but Selly knew he was smiling.

"Just until my parents get back from their vacation."

"And where'd that rotten father of yours take your mother this time?" Jacobson was very familiar with the Zaharoff family; he had worked with Maxsym, Selly's father, for fifteen years before leaving to join the Navy.

"Only to Cuba for a couple of weeks." Her smile never faltered.

"Only Cuba…" The CO scoffed and turned to walk away.

"Sir? Would you mind excusing David for the night? He came down with something nasty yesterday." Jacobson waved his hand dismissively.

Anxiously, Selly took off towards her fellow staff members.

* * *

The new coxswain was great; the entire march past had gone off with out a hitch, much like the rest of the night. Selly remembered when she used to be the coxswain three years ago. She wished she was still as active in the corps, but her education and participation in the naval reserves had taken up most of her time.

* * *

Selly waved goodbye to all of her friends and started her car. The engine rumbled to life and she grinned at her friends' expressions of jealousy. She laughed at them as she pulled out of the parking lot, her hair blowing in the breeze.

With her parents out of town, Selly had volunteered to move out of her dorm and back home for a few weeks so that she could keep an eye on her brother for them. Go figure that her brother decided to come down with the flu while she was there. Of course, as payment for watching her brother and the house, her father had graciously (after an hour of non-stop pleading) allowed her access to his car. But this wasn't just any car; this was her father's 1969 Datsun Fairlady, a reasonably rare car to own. Painted a deep metallic blue and equipped with a black soft top, now lowered, Selly's ride was definitely a chick magnet, or in her case, a man magnet.

She pulled into parents' driveway and parked the Datsun in the garage. After letting the retired police dog out for a few minutes, she walked into the house. Kicking off her glossy boots and throwing her keys haphazardly onto the counter, she climbed the stairs to her brother's room.

"David?" She asked, poking her head into the room. He was asleep but had left the television on, something that he rarely ever did. She glanced at her watch, 9:15 pm. It was just about time for some more Tylenol.

Sitting on the edge of her brother's bed, she shook him gently.

"Dave. Wake up, time for some more pills." When her brother didn't respond, she frowned and tried giving him another shake, this one much more firm. Still, he refused to wake up. She felt his forehead with the back of her hand, only to find it surprisingly warm.

"Jesus, buddy…" She muttered. She leaned over to listen to his breathing. She pulled back suddenly when she noticed the pail next to the bed. She had given it to him when he hadn't been feeling well so that he didn't have to run to the bathroom every half an hour. It was now half full, filled with red tinted vomit.

She abruptly paled. Her brother had been vomiting up blood.

"Okay, now you're going to the hospital." She mumbled. Selly walked to the phone. Dialling 911, she waited for the operator to pick up.

She quickly gave her address and then described her brother's symptoms. No more than three minutes later were there two paramedics loading her little brother onto a stretcher.

"You guys go ahead, I'm going to follow as soon as I get changed." Despite her brother's condition, she was remarkably calm. Quickly changing into a pair of jeans and a t-shirt, she grabbed her keys, locked the door, and vaulted over the car door into her seat.

* * *

The ambulance arrived at the hospital fifteen minutes before Selly did. It took her a few extra minutes to find a good parking space, and ultimately decided to use her father's parking pass and put the blue convertible in the staff lot. Selly knew that no one would complain if she used her father's spot.

She walked calmly into the emergency room, quickly catching the attention of the nurse behind the desk. Selly was very familiar with most of the staff at the IWK, mainly because she often stopped by to see her father, the lead paediatrician.

The nurse guided her away from the traffic of the emergency room and back into a quiet hallway.

"You're brother is in there, Lina. The doctor will be back in a moment to talk with you." The nurse explained. Lina was the name that all the hospital staff had called her ever since she was about two years old. Briskly, the nurse turned to leave.

"Thanks Jan." She called after the retreating nurse, who gave a wave. Selly walked into her brother's room.

"Hey bud." She said casually, sitting down next to her sleeping brother. She noticed that they already had him hooked onto an IV. Five seconds later, a short women, no more than five feet tall, walked into the room. She was obviously of middle-eastern decent, Selly guess that she was Lebanese.

"Sorry to keep you waiting Ms. Zaharoff," She had a thick accent. "I'm Dr. Bitar."

"Pleased to meet you." Selly said, sticking out her hand. This was one doctor she hadn't met before. A small, plastic-covered hand shook hers briefly. "So what can you tell me about my brother." Selly leaned back in her chair and folded her arms.

"Well, from what we can tell, your brother only has the flu." Dr. Bitar stated calmly.

"What about him vomiting up blood?" Selly watched the doctor carefully.

"Most likely it's just a bleeding stomach ulcer, so I've started him on medication for both that and the flu." To Selly, that was an awful lot of blood for just an ulcer. "But I'd like to keep him here for further observation. It will probably only be a day or two."

"Fair enough. Can I stay in here with him?" Selly seemed unaffected by the events of the last hour.

"I'd advise against it. There would be a good chance that you'd catch the virus as well." Selly nodded and stood up.

"When do you think he'll wake up?" Selly asked as the two women left the room, the doctor closing the door behind them. The doctor paused at her question.

"It's hard to say right now, but I'm confident that he'll be back up and running in a day or so." Dr. Johari smiled and turned to walk down the hallway. Selly sat on a chair and leaned against the wall. She quickly scanned her surroundings before shifting in her seat. She let her head drop and tried to get some sleep.

* * *

It had already been two days, and Selly's brother, David, had not yet woken up. The dark circles under her eyes didn't betray her condition either. Selly had only gotten about five hours of sleep since her brother was admitted.

"Ms. Zaharoff?" Dr. Bitar asked as she walked up to the young woman.

"Yes?" Selly stated calmly.

"I'd like to talk to you about your brother's condition." Selly raised an eyebrow.

"What's up?"

"Your brother has begun to show signs of respiratory distress. Does he have asthma?" She frowned at the doctor as she remembered watching a tall nurse, George, hook David up to a set of oxygen tubes. As for the asthma, couldn't they just get that off his file?

"No." She said slowly.

"Any signs of breathing problems before?"

"Not that I know of, why?" Selly watched the doctor with a pair of keen eyes.

"Your brother's condition has not improved, despite the antibiotics that we've given him, in fact, his condition has begun to decline slowly." Selly's serious expression never faltered. "Respiratory distress is not common with the average flu strain, and neither is vomiting blood…"

"You told that was because of a stomach ulcer." Selly said lightly.

"Yes, but that was before his condition started declining." The young woman nodded in understanding. The doctor was nervous. "I have reason to believe that your brother has contracted a different strain of Influenza. What worries me is that you have been exposed to your brother since he started showing symptoms. There might be a good chance that you've contracted the virus as well. I'd like to run a blood test just in case."

"Would I be a hazard to anyone else? Shouldn't I be put into quarantine?" Selly asked.

"The common flu usually doesn't become contagious until the first signs of symptoms, so you shouldn't be a problem for now. But if you do start showing and signs of the virus, you need to inform someone immediately." Dr. Bitar put a lot of emphasis on the last word, just to make sure that Selly didn't overlook it. The doctor stood up to leave. "If you'd follow me please, there are a few questions I need to ask you, and we need to get that test done." Selly never complained.

Selly wasn't a short woman, she was actually pretty tall at five feet and ten inches. She carried a weight of nearly one hundred and ninety pounds around, but didn't look it – her training in the naval reserves kept her extremely athletic. But no matter how tall she was, or how fit she was, nothing could keep her from jogging to keep up with the small doctor.

"Has your brother come into any contact with birds – wild or domestic – in the last two weeks?" Dr. Bitar asked as the walked down the hall.

"I've only been home for the last few days, so I'm not really sure, but I don't think so." Selly muttered, still trying to keep up with the short woman.

"Has anyone else in your family, including yourself, been to any farms, ranches, wildlife reserves, or zoos recently?"

"Like I said, I don't know that much, but I know that both my parents have been working until they went away. I don't think they've had time to go out and do something like that. My brother might have, but you'll have to ask him." Of course, asking her brother was out of the question, he was still asleep.

"Have any of you come into contact with someone who has just returned from China, Vietnam, North or South Korea, Laos, Cambodia, or Thailand?" There was a hesitation as they continued to walk.

"My aunt returned from China a few months ago, and my grandmother visited those countries a year ago." The doctor frowned.

"No, that was too long ago, I don't think this virus has a incubation period that long. Are you sure that there's no one else?"

"None that I know of." Selly tried to piece all of the doctor's questions together. Birds, Asian countries, her sick brother, farms? Suddenly, Selly stopped dead in her tracks.

"You think this is the Avian Flu!" Dr. Bitar stopped and made frantic indication that she didn't want anyone to hear. Of course, a passing nurse had heard them, and gave them both strange and fearful glances. Slowly, the news sunk in and Selly found her knees go weak. She leaned against the wall for support.

"Jesus…"

"Christ." The doctor finished for her

"I knew reading my father's medical journals would come back to bite me in the ass." She groaned.

"Well, I highly doubt that your brother has avian, but he is displaying several of the key symptoms. We are taking every precaution to ensure that, what ever this thing is, it stays confined and is properly treated. I wouldn't worry about your brother. People his age have the best chance of success against these sort of viruses." Dr. Bitar explained softly."I have already contacted other doctors in the area, and they all agree that your brother's symptoms should be considered a red flag. But that does not mean that your brother has contracted avian. Chances are, it's just a variation of this year's flu virus, and if it is, your brother will be out of here reasonably soon---"

"And what it's not? What if it is avian?" The doctor never had time to answer.

A shrill beep emanated from her belt. Frowning, she pulled off her pager and read the short set of words. Selly could never forget the look of pure fear on the doctor's face as she took off down the hall, running at nearly full speed.

Of course, this is why Selly decided to follow.

* * *

"I want everyone in there in masks and shields! No exceptions!" Selly watched the small doctor as she cried frantically into the phone. Apparently the page had come from the neighbouring QEII.

Little did Selly know, but in the emergency room at the other hospital, were two men, both lying on gurneys in the middle of the bustling room. Both were coughing, sweating profusely, shivering, and thickly covered in blood-saturated vomit.

* * *

"Connect me to the PHAC." Dr. Bitar said swiftly as she picked up the receiver. The nurse immediately began dialling. The PHAC was Canada's version of the NIH, the Public Health Agency of Canada. Once someone picked up on the other end of the line, the doctor asked for the head of the disease control. Someone was on the line almost immediately.

"Yes, this is Dr. Bitar at the IWK hospital in Halifax. I have three patients who were just brought in displaying some flu-like symptoms. Unfortunately, there's something else that has me concerned."

* * *

Dr. Stephen Connor looked up from a medical journal when his phone rang.

"Connor." He said quickly, glancing back down at his journal. His eyes shot back up when the voice at the other end explained who it was.

"PHAC?" Connor asked in disbelief. The man confirmed his identity and quickly proceeded to explain the predicament in Nova Scotia.

"I'm faxing you all the information that we have now." The man sounded young, and very nervous.

"Right, I'll contact you once I've gone through it." Connor said, leaning over to pluck the first of three sheets out of his fax machine. The young Canadian cheeped a good-bye and hung up.

With his eyes never leaving the paper, Connor replaced the receiver. He glanced over the other two papers and stood up. Just as he was about to leave his office, Eva Rossi popped her head in.

"Hey, are you going to join us for some supper?" All considered, nine-thirty at night was early for Connor and his team to go out for some supper.

"I need everyone in the boardroom, now." Eva nodded and ran off to find the others. Connor turned and walked down the hall, reading over the fax sheets again.

Within minutes, Connor was sitting at the boardroom table, accompanied by the other four members of his team.

"I just got a call from the assistant director of the PHAC." Miles McCabe couldn't help but cut in.

"PHAC?" He looked at Connor with confusion.

"Canadian NIH." Eva explained, Miles nodded.

"There was a sixteen year-old boy brought into the hospital displaying flu-like symptoms along with some respiratory problems and vomiting blood. Two more have recently been brought in with similar symptoms." Connor said, passing out the fax sheets. He let them all look over the papers before continuing. "The doctor that's taking care of the boy gave the PHAC her best guess." He paused again. "Her best guess is that they've contracted avian influenza, but none have been responding to the standard treatments." The other four members looked at each other briefly.

"What do you think it is?" Natalie Durant asked.

"I'm not going to agree right away, but if it is avian, then we could be facing a massive pandemic; and if it's not, it could be much worse." Avian influenza, aka the bird flu, had only ever had a few outbreaks, mainly in Asian countries, and mainly in birds. In only a few isolated instances had the disease spread to humans. Unfortunately, those few outbreaks were enough to determine the virus' famous _seventy-five_ percent mortality rate.

It was originally believed that the avian flu didn't transfer itself directly from the birds to humans, but that it was usually transferred to more domestic animals first, such as cattle, pigs, horses and cats. Later studies then proved that it was possible for the disease to be received directly through birds. It was less common to be contracted from wild birds – poultry usually being the culprit.

It was even more uncommon for avian to be transferred from one human to another, but some variations of the virus had been known to go airborne.

"So why did the PHAC contact us? Can't they handle it?" Frank Powell asked.

"They've been swamped ever since SARS broke out in Toronto again, and they've recently become occupied with outbreaks in Vancouver." Connor said. "And they also said that we've had more experience in dealing with the avian flu." It was true, Connor had dealt with avian before, but they only had one human case, and an obvious cause.

In 2002, a poultry farm in Virginia was infected with the avian influenza and one human case was reported. Fortunately, the man recovered without many complications – he had contracted one of the virus' milder versions.

There was a long pause from the group. Miles looked up from the sheet in front of him.

"So… uh… when are we leaving?"

* * *

The commotion in the emergency room had subsided, at least for the moment. Dr. Bitar was looking through a few files on her clipboard, shaking her head the whole time. The two men, aged twenty-five and forty-eight, were coworkers at a poultry farm in New Ross. Bitar knew that the workers from the farm only added another red flag to the situation. To make matters worse, another woman had been brought in only minutes before, showing similar symptoms, but she was not as far advanced.

Selly was restricted from knowing this information, but she knew all the people in the right places. Rumours had begun to fly, putting the entire hospital, and the neighbouring QEII, on an unofficial state of alert. Even the media had become interested, but they were easily kept at bay.

Selly now knew that avian was even more of a possibility than before. The two farmers made sense, but she couldn't explain how her brother had gotten it, and now that there was another patient…

She jolted suddenly when someone placed a hand on her shoulder.

"God dammit!" She yelped as she spun. "Nancy! Don't do that!" The blond nurse smiled warmly, handing Selly a tray. "Oh, thanks. You have no idea how hungry I am." The young women graciously took the tray from Nancy.

"How are you doing?" Nancy had known Selly since she had been born and had always treated her like her own daughter.

"I'm feeling fine." Selly muttered, licking the top of a pudding cup.

"I don't mean that. How are you doing, with your brother in here and all?" Nancy was not as ditsy as she sometimes appeared and was the friendliest person Selly knew.

"Okay I guess."

"Hey, I know it's tough." The nurse took a seat next to Selly, plucking a carrot stick from the tray. "I can still remember how worried your parents used to get when ever you came in here." She said through a mouthful of carrot.

"Yeah, but this is different. My parents eventually got used to me coming in here, but this is a first for David. What am I supposed to do? They're on vacation. I can't just ruin that for them." Selly swallowed a spoonful of pudding. A worried frown covered her face.

"Then don't tell them. I sure your brother will be back to normal before they get back, so just tell them then."

"How can you always look on the bright side of things?" Selly said with a smirk.

"Hey, I had to deal with you for sixteen years, remember." Nancy gave her a little shove with her shoulder.

"It always comes back to that doesn't it?" Selly asked, her smirk evolving into a small smile. Nancy gave a small laugh.

"Anyways, I have to get back to work. I'll come buy to check on you later." She said with a grin.

"Okay, and bring more puddings!" The nurse laughed and headed off down the hall. Selly's smile faded as she adverted her gaze back to her ill brother.

* * *

"I've never been to Canada." Natalie said, dealing out the cards to her coworkers.

"It's cold." Frank muttered, making a face at his cards. "You are the worst dealer I have ever met."

"Hey, I try." She spat back.

"Is it actually as cold as they say?" Miles asked, shuffling through his cards.

"Colder than hell itself. Snow as far as the eye can see. Everyone lives in igloos and owns their own polar bear." Connor couldn't suppress a grin at Frank's smart remark.

"Why do I find that hard to believe?" Miles placed two chips at the centre of the table. "I bet ten."

"Oh really?" Eva's sly tone was evident. "I'll meet your ten. And raise you five." She paused as she organized her cards. "Ever been to Maine Miles?"

"No." He watched Natalie place her cards on the table, an obvious fold.

"How about Michigan?" Frank asked, tossing his chips into the pile.

"Yeah, I've been there." Connor folded as well.

"It's just like Michigan. Show me what you've got." The three laid their cards down simultaneously.

"Ha! Full house beats your pairs gentlemen." Eva reached across the table and swept up the chips.

"It's a good thing we don't play with money." Miles grumbled, Eva just grinned.

"How much longer until we land?" Natalie asked. Connor glanced at his watch.

"About an hour. Whose deal?" Miles shuffled the cards and began dealing. "You've made all the transportation arrangements right, Eva?"

"Of course. They'll be waiting for us when we arrive. I've also contacted the CBSA, they've agreed to give us priority." The CBSA, otherwise known as the Canada Border Services Agency, was the newly created version of Canada Customs.

"Good."

"It's not like there'll be much of a line up anyways. Who the hell wants to go to Nova Scotia?" Everyone shot Frank questioning glances. "What? It's a little tiny island in the middle of nowhere, and from what I've heard; it's just one giant pile of rocks. It doesn't sound very attractive to me."

"First of all," Natalie said, placing a few chips on the table. "It's not an island: it's a peninsula. And second, you never know, you might like it there. I read a bit on it before we left – apparently it's quite beautiful. I'm bidding ten." Frank shook his head.

"Frank got burned." Miles hissed under his breath, and received a nasty glare from his co-worker.

"Fold."

"I'll see your bid," Connor tossed in his chips. "And I'll raise you another ten." Miles folded almost immediately.

"Twenty it is." Eva said happily, sliding her chips in. "How about we make it interesting? Winner gets dinner…cooked by the losers." She dragged out the last word teasingly. Both Natalie and Connor nodded.

"Let's see what you've got." Miles said, trying to peer over Natalie's shoulder. They all laid down their cards.

"Oh Natalie!" Eva taunted. "Looks like my two pairs beat yours." Connor crossed his arms and leaned back in his seat.

"I like Italian." There was a defeated 'thunk' as Eva dropped her head onto the table.

"Hey alright! Four of a kind!" Frank gave Connor a pat on the shoulder.

"You," Eva muttered, pointing her finger accusingly, "are getting Kraft Dinner." Connor displayed a satisfied smirk.

* * *

They had landed and were climbing out of the plane when a young man, maybe twenty-seven, and an older woman jogged out to greet them. The man was dressed in navy blue coveralls; the gold shoulder flash clearly read 'CBSA'. The woman was in more formal attire; dress pants, pressed shirt, and her red hair pulled back in a tight bun.

"Dr. Connor? I'm Mary Goldwells, the region representative for the PHAC." Connor didn't waste any time. Jacket in hand, he walked swiftly for the gate doors.

"Has the condition of the patients progressed any?" His other team members followed closely behind.

"Not noticeably, but the QEII had admitted another three patients displaying the same symptoms. That makes it one at the IWK and six at the QEII." Connor frowned.

Customs was quick and painless – they were out within minutes. Goldwells led them outside the doors where two black Suburbans, a full sized carrier van and two police cars sat waiting for them. Everyone stopped and turned to Eva.

"I only asked for the SUVs. I guess they came in a package." She shrugged. The SUVs were the first ones out of the airport, carrying Natalie, Miles and Frank in one, and Eva, Connor, and Goldwells in the other. Their gear was loaded into the van a few minutes later and took off after them. The drivers of both the SUVs and the van were RCMP officers.

* * *

Miles watched the trees flash under the blinking lights of their police escorts, the sirens echoing off the neighbouring lake. It was nearly three thirty in the morning and there were no cars on the road. Ahead, he could see the lights of Halifax glowing off the clouds.

All members of the team were gazing out the windows as they pulled onto the streets of Halifax. Giant maple trees adorned the lawns of many houses.

"How much more Canadian can you get?" Frank muttered. The driver grunted in response. "No offence."

It had only taken them a half an hour to get from the airport to the first hospital, the QEII. The SUV carrying Miles, Natalie and Frank stopped there, the other SUV continued to the IWK only a few blocks away.

Connor pulled out his cell phone. "Natalie, I want you to set up at the QEII, I'll check out the other patient here. Get Frank started on the case right away. Tell Miles to question the families, I'll relay what I find."

"You got it Stephen." Connor flipped his phone closed and hopped out of the SUV. The back entrance of the IWK was all but deserted. The parking lot was poorly lit, but he could see the lights shining out the double doors. He brushed past an old blue convertible and gave it an appreciative glance before walking in through the doors.

Connor had never seen a hospital as quiet as this one. He saw a few nurses, a single doctor, and only a handful of patients.

"Follow me please." Goldwells led Connor and Eva past the emergency room and into a back hallway.

* * *

Selly stood there, watching her sleeping brother through the window. The hospital had been unusually quiet tonight, so she had been left alone. Dr. Bitar had stopped by several times for some quick check-ups, and the nurses had done the rest.

Selly sighed and crossed her arms. The sound of footsteps pulled her out of her reverie.

"This was the first patient to be brought in. He's also the youngest." Selly frowned; she didn't recognize any of the people walking towards her. One was a crisply dressed woman with tight red hair; another woman less formally dressed, but definitely there to impress; and the last was a relatively tall man, short grey-blond hair, dressed in a black t-shirt and a pair of black slacks.

All three stopped next to her, but never gave her a second glance. The tall man studied her brother for a few moments.

"I need his charts." He said simply. The businesswoman nodded and walked down the hall. The other woman turned and spoke to him in a hushed voice.

"Would someone mind telling me what's going on?" Selly spat, gaining the attention of the other two. They exchanged looks briefly and stared at her. "That's my brother." She said, nodding her head towards the hospital room. "I'd appreciate it if I could at least know who the hell you are."

"I'm Stephen Connor." The man said simply. "I'll be taking over the care of your brother for the time being."

"Eva Rossi." She offered with a smile.

"Selina Zaharoff." She said, looking back and forth between the two, obviously confused. "And you're both doctors?" She asked sceptically.

"I'm logistics." Eva said, Selly nodded.

"You two aren't from this hospital are you?" She never expected the answer that they gave her.

"We're part of a special medical team from the NIH." Selly's jaw dropped slightly.

"NIH? This is actually that serious?" Connor took a breath.

"We're hoping that it's just an abnormal case of the flu, and with any luck, we came up here for nothing." Connor gauged her reaction carefully. "Now if you don't mind, I'd like to ask you a few questions about your brother."

* * *

Dr. Connor had asked her nearly the same set of questions that Dr. Bitar had, and Selly gave the best answers that she could.

She stood out in the hall as both the doctors tended to her brother, adorned with face shields and masks. Selly shoved her hands into her pockets to stop her nervous fidgeting.

"Do you think he's going to be okay?" She asked quietly. Eva gave her a reassuring pat on the shoulder.

"Dr. Connor's one of the best. He'll do everything he can to help your brother." Selly cracked an amused smile.

"Logistics, huh? Rephrasing the truth to make it sound a hell of a lot better than it really is." Eva hadn't expected that, and recoiled. Selly's grin grew a little wider.

"Don't take it personally. I'm actually a Public Relations student. I'm learning to do what you're doing now."

"Nice to know you view our profession with such optimism." Eva muttered sarcastically. Selly gave a little laugh.

"Sorry, I get mean when I'm nervous. It must be the Russian in me. I actually have the utmost respect in what you do, if I didn't, I wouldn't be doing it myself." Selly offered a well-natured smile. Eva was hesitant, but returned it. Her attention was pulled away when her cell phone buzzed. She pulled it out and flipped it open.

"Eva." She said abruptly. "Okay, I'll tell him." She hung up and adverted her gaze back to Connor.

* * *

Connor frowned behind his mask. The boy was declining faster than he would have thought. His breathing was slow and laboured, his temperature was nearly one hundred and five, and the kid had been unconscious for nearly three days now. He looked up and saw Eva and Selina watching him through the window.

As left the room, Connor pulled the mask down around his neck and flipped up his shield. Selina was waiting there for him, looking at him with a glimmer of hope. But he had none to offer her.

"Your brother's condition has been declining steadily." He wasn't about to lie to her, or try to butter up the truth; he wasn't there for that. "He's having a rough time breathing. If this is going to continue, I'm going to have him hooked up to a respirator." Selina appeared pained at the thought. She ground her teeth slowly.

"Fine." She muttered. Connor and Eva exchanged looks briefly. Selina turned back towards her brother. Eva watched her carefully.

"Natalie wants you to call her." She said after turning back to her teammate. Connor nodded and pulled his gloves off.

* * *

"Miles interviewed all the family members. In two of the cases, the exposure, the symptoms, everything points to avian."

"The farm workers." Stephen stated.

"Right. But we're having a harder time finding the source of all the other patients. Any luck on your end?" Natalie asked.

"No. The boy's parents are away, and his sister hasn't been around him long enough to determine what could have caused the infection. What about the tests? Did you get anything back from those?" Connor felt a wave of despair when Natalie paused.

"They all came back positive for influenza, but it's still too early to determine what strain we're dealing with." She tried to sound optimistic, but it came out sounding desperate. Connor sighed and shook his head.

"Call me if you find out anything. I'm going to continue working on the boy over here." Connor flipped his phone shut and dropped it into his pants pocket. He turned to Eva.

"Let me guess," She muttered, "it's not good."

"When is it ever?"

* * *

When Eva emerged from the small lab, Selina was nowhere to be seen. Frowning, she walked over to the bathroom. Just as she was about to push open the door, it opened, revealing the young woman she had been searching for.

Selina stared at her for a moment, obviously startled. Eva had just enough time to notice her blood shot eyes.

"Hey." She said as she brushed past the NIH employee. Eva watched her as she walked down the hall. At first she thought that Selina had been crying, but her face wasn't as flushed as it should have been. To make matters even more interesting, the girl was sniffing, but it was a dry sniff. Eva continued to watch her as she sat down in front of her brother's room.

Eva walked back into their makeshift lab, only to find Connor hunched over a microscope.

"I just saw something odd." She said slowly. Connor never looked up.

"What?"

"Is there any chance that the boy's sister has a drug dependence?" Connor pulled away from his microscope to give her a sceptical glance.

"What do you mean 'drug dependence'?"

"I mean," She said, pulling up a stool. "I just watched her come out of the bathroom looking as though she had just sniffed something illegal." Eva meant it in more of a well natured tone, only semi-serious. Connor went back to his microscope.

"You mean cocaine?" He asked, rotating the lenses.

"Well… yeah, or something else like that. I mean, it would explain why she's so calm." Connor's eyes went unfocused as he stared at the microbes.

"It's possible, but highly unlikely." He turned to look at Eva again. He nodded his head towards the sick boy down the hall. "Their mother is a narcotics officer. I doubt she'd get away with anything like that."

"Oh…" Eva stammered, her gaze following Connor's. "How'd you know that?"

"It was in the kid's file. He's insured under his mother's government health plan." He stated bluntly and Eva mentally kicked herself for not remembering what she had read about David. "Speaking of which, I want you to go through the records and see if you can find any past cases that match his symptoms." Eva nodded and headed out of the room. Connor spun the dial on his microscope, letting it focus in for a closer look at the microbe.

"I'm not on drugs." Came Selina's voice, calm and assertive. Connor jolted in surprise.

"What?" He asked, rubbing a hand over his face. Selina was leaning against the doorframe, arms crossed.

"I'm not on drugs. What your friend, Eva, saw was me after I had taken my allergy medication." She pulled a small green bottle out of her pocket. "It irritates my eyes and makes me sniff for a little while after taking it." Connor recognized the symptoms as common side effects to most nasal-sprays, much like the one she held in her hand. "My mother always says that I'll be well practiced for when I start doing cocaine." Selina grinned and tucked the bottle back into her pocket.

"I'll have to remind Eva to close the door next time she decides to talk about you." Connor granted her a small smirk before turning back to his microscope for the hundredth time that morning.

"Nah, I'd hear you anyways." She never moved from her position at the door. She looked around the room for a moment. "Something tells me I shouldn't be in here." Connor switched the glass plates under his microscope and stared at a different set of samples.

"You're right, you shouldn't be in here." But Selina still didn't move.

"Do you think it's avian?" For the first time, Connor noted that she actually sounded worried. He pulled back from the microscope and looked around the lab awkwardly before meeting her concerned gaze.

"I don't know." It was the best and only answer he could offer. She opened her mouth to say something more, but stopped when an anxious stranger brushed her aside.

"Frank?" Connor asked, eyeing his friend carefully.

"Just came over to check up on you. How's it going?" Selina got a look from Connor, indicating that it was her time to leave. She nodded and turned to go.

"I don't want to be left out of the loop, Doc!" She called as she walked down the hall. Frank noticed his boss' look of slight amusement.

"Who was that? A med-student?" He asked, watching the girl take a seat a ways down the hall.

"Selina Zaharoff. She's the boy's sister." Frank gave him a strange look.

"What is she doing back here? I thought this was a restricted zone." Connor sighed in obvious frustration.

"It is. I tried to kick her out once, but the hospital staff just let her back in." Frank shot him a questioning glance. "Her father's the lead paediatrician, so she has all the right connections in all the right places."

"Oh, go figure. Anyways, Natalie's still working on her set of the samples. I'm supposed to pick up what you've got from the kid," Connor nodded and gathered up the glass plates and petri dishes. He placed everything in a sealed plastic, orange box, clearly indicating the hazardous material that lay inside. "Alright. I'll take this back to Natalie, and then I'm heading off to investigate the patients' homes."

"Try to look for anything that might be associated with birds or other wildlife. Did they get that farm quarantined yet?" Eva had made the call to PHAC shortly after their arrival, ordering them, in a not-so-polite manner, to cut off the farm.

"Yeah, all shipments have been recalled and the workers have been quarantined for observation. It's going to be hell if those tests off the chickens come back negative." Connor knew that if the virus didn't originate from the farm, their job would become increasingly harder as they tried to locate the source of the virus, _and_ work to stop the contagion from spreading. Not to mention the lawsuits that might ensue from the farmers.

"Get those back to Natalie and get Miles to give you a hand with the investigation." Frank nodded and left the room. He stopped to talk to Selina briefly, and Connor watched as she pulled a key off her key ring and handed it to him. He assumed it was the key to her house.

Slowly, he rubbed his eyes and turned back to David's charts.

* * *

Selly was nibbling on a celery stick when she jumped. Cursing under her breath, she pulled her cell phone out of her pocket.

"Yo." It was her standard greeting. Selly immediately recognized the voice on her phone. "What's up Casey? … What…oh…uh, yeah that could be a problem…I'll call you back, okay?" Selly frantically hit the red button on her phone and hightailed it down to Connor's lab.

"Hey Doc?" Connor put down his coffee and one of the many files.

"What can I do for you?"

"Has your buddy gone to our house yet?" Connor gave her a strange look.

"No, I don't think so."

"Okay good, tell him that he can't go inside."

"Why not?"

"Because unless he wants to get attacked by a one-hundred and twenty pound ex-police dog with stainless steel teeth who has a habit of biting off the balls of solicitors, he might not want to open the door." Most of Selly's words had come out jumbled and confused, causing Connor to give her another look. She took a breath and started again. "My dog is extremely protective, and he is going to attack your buddy unless he's careful." Connor raised his eyebrows in understanding and quickly pulled out his cell phone.

"Powell." Came the response after three rings.

"Frank, have you been to the Zaharoff house yet?" Connor couldn't hear the sound of the Suburban in the background; Frank and Miles were out and about.

"Good timing Stephen, I've just got the key in the lock right now." Connor visibly cringed and Selly quickly followed suit.

"Don't open the door, Frank." He said quickly.

"What? Why? Do you think this thing is that contag – Jesus!" Connor could hear his friend stumble and fall, probably on his ass. Barking and howling caused him to pull his cell phone away from his ear.

"Oh no…" Selly moaned. She pulled her cell phone out and hit the autodial.

As Connor frantically tried to get a response from Frank, Selly chewed her thumbnail as she counted the rings in her phone. After five, someone picked up.

* * *

"Tantallon RCMP detachment, Constable Gillis speaking."

"Joe? Hey, what's up?"

"Selly! How's your brother doing?"

"Fine, but I have a bigger problem right now. Casey was supposed to be taking care of Dutch while I'm in here with David, but he dropped him off back home before going to work."

"Uh huh."

"Anyways, there's an inspector that's supposed to be searching the house. Dutch might have just attacked him. Any chance you could get someone down there to check on him? Someone the dog knows?"

"Sure thing." She could hear Gillis fiddling with a radio in the background before she heard him give the order.

* * *

"Jesus! What the hell kind of dog is that?" Frank yelled, and Connor was forced to pull the phone back again. His friend was okay; apparently he hadn't had the door all the way open when the massive dog launched himself at the inspector. Frank had reacted with only a millisecond to spare, pulling the door shut. He now stared at a pair of glistening stainless steel teeth through a pane of broken glass.

"Are you okay, Frank?" Connor asked. He could hear Miles' feet sliding in the gravel as he raced up to his friend. Above all, he could hear two sets of sirens in the background.

"Huh? What are the cops doing here?" Connor heard Miles ask. He shot a glance at Selly, who was still on her phone. He caught her attention and mouthed '_Police?_'. She simply shrugged. "Paramedics too? What's going on?"

* * *

Frank sat in the back of the ambulance and watched two policemen play tug-of-war with the massive German Sheppard. The dog's tail never stopped wagging.

Once he had won the strength match, Dutch came bounding up to the paramedics, eager to play with them as well. Miles laughed and stroked the dog's head.

"I don't get it. He's harmless!" Frank didn't agree with his partner.

"Hey, you weren't the one that almost got their leg torn off!" Dutch put both paws on the rear bumper of the ambulance and raised his head to sniff at Frank's pant leg. With his tail still wagging, the dog dropped his over-sized orange Kong onto the inspector's lap. "Yeah right, like I'm about to play with you." A loud, bone-quaking bark was his only response. Frank grumbled and picked the slimy toy off his lap, and dropped it onto the gravel driveway. "Are you guys going to get this guy out of here so I can look around the house?" He asked, pointing to the dog at his feet.

"Sure thing. I'll take him back to my place and arrange to have him picked up by another handler." Constable Zahour said, wrestling the dog playfully.

"Yeah whatever, just get him out of here." Frank hopped out of the ambulance and headed for the Suburban with Miles in tow.

* * *

"Sorry about the scare." Selina muttered sheepishly. She shut off her cell phone and tucked it back into her pocket. Connor didn't say anything; he just rested his head on his hand and shut his eyes.

"Your dog has stainless steel teeth?" He opened his eyes again. Selina forced an uncomfortable grin.

"He's a retired dog from the Force. A couple years ago, someone took a swing at him with an aluminium baseball bat. He broke off both of his canines, so the doctor replaced them with steel ones." Connor mumbled through his hand as he turned to get back to work.

"Yeah, only in Canada." Selina grinned, copying what Connor had just mumbled. After another sharp glare, she turned and left the lab. She was immediately replaced by a worried Eva.

"Is everything alright? Miles just told me what happened." She was obviously worried.

"Yeah, they're both fine. Any past patients with similar symptoms?" He asked, sounding incredibly tired. Eva shook her head.

"Not a single one. This is a first for this hospital."

"What about any other hospitals? Any similarities there?" Connor sensed the hesitation in her gaze.

"There was one case that was admitted a couple weeks ago, down in Bridgewater." She said slowly. "Exact symptoms. She died with three days of being admitted." Eva watched the look of dread pass over her superiors face.

* * *

Okay, they're in parts because I think that they're way too long to be chapters. Might be a while to get Part II up, but I'll try hard. For all those Canadians that are reading this, don't take offence to what I had Frank say, it was meant as a joke (we don't own polar bears, or live in igloos, and we have fantasticly great summers, but cold winters). Cheers to all the MI Board members that are reading this! Hope you enjoyed it. If you have any problems understanding what's going on, leave it in a review, and please give me some slack for the lack of originality in the disease, I'm not familiar with anything else. Toodles. 


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